Abacela Vintner's Blend #6 Red Table Wine

[dananne]

Yes, it does differ a bit from the Tempranillo I'm used to from Spain, but the Umpqua Valley (and S. Oregon's Rogue Valley, for that matter) is quite hot and best suited to warm-climate varieties. Abacela, IMHO, is the standard-bearer for domestic Tempranillo. The owners, Earl and Hilda Jones (who are from Atlanta, incidentally), researched quite extensively to find a growing climate similar to Rioja, and that's where they ended up. Since then, many other vineyards and wineries call S. Oregon home. Abacela's Tempranillo ages wonderfully -- I'm still working my way through the '98s and haven't even started on the '99s. It's worth a try if you ever stumble upon it. They also produce wonderful (and ageworthy) Syrah, Merlot, Cab Franc, and Malbec, and they've started doing good things with Grenache and Dolcetto.